Start of the learning journey-- 28 August 2011

Being accepted by Toa Payoh Vets marked the start of my journey to pursue a veterinary career. I will like to take this chance to thank Dr. Sing for accepting my request to learn from him.

1) First case was about an old dog (10 years old) that had an emciated and balding body. Noticed the presence of tumors on the right lip and jaw area, foul stench coming from the mouth and the underside of the paws seem like it was constantly under abrasion so that it looked raw and it is even bleeding.

Dr. Sing diagnosed it to be tumors around the lip area, and the bad stench might be caused by the ulcers rotting within the mouth. Advice from Dr. Sing was to undergo a surgery to remove the tumors and to further confirm if the tumors are either benign or malignant by sending them to laboratory for testing?

However, a couple of issues complicate the situation further. First consideration is the age of the dog. Undergoing a surgery is already a risk, with old age the risk will be higher. Furthermore, we cannot determine if the frail dog is able to fight its way to good health after. Secondly, the surgery cost weighs heavily on the owner.

There's a dilemma between the decision to spend this precious sum of money to try to save their beloved dog, no matter what the outcome of the surgery is or to keep this sum for their own livelihood.
Owners walked out with a heavy heart.

Dr. Sing mentioned that the focus of being a vet is not always on how much money we can earn from the clients, but we must also pay attention to client’s welfare as well. That is the reason why Dr. Sing did not insist on the surgery, instead he send them home to consider about their situation.

2) Second case of the day is with regards to amphibian. Owner walked into the clinic carrying a big tub filled with low level of water, and in the middle sat a terrapin. First glance, you will see a very dirty looking terrapin. Upon closer look, we realize that the shell was covered with blood clots. According to the vet, the shell felt soft and seem abnormal.

The vet diagnoses it with the lack of vitamins and minerals. Therefore, the pet gave a prescription of oral multi-vitamin. To add on, the vet suggested for them to improve its housing by providing a balance between having lots of water for them to swim and somewhere dry for them to sun themselves.

3) Third case is about a poodle puppy which displayed a lack of appetite, and being listless all day long. First procedure is to take the puppy’s weight, then temperature. Puppy seems emaciated and weak. When prompt, owner described puppy’s diet to consist of brown rice, vegetable, beancurd and a bit of salt and apples.

Preliminary observations ruled that the puppy is malnutrition. To find out what other problems it is suffering if any, a blood test was carried out. The puppy was given Intravenous drip to replenish lost nutrients and was hospitalized till the result of the blood test is out. During this period, the puppy was fed dog food to aid in recovery.

Blood test result showed that the puppy have high uric acid, low urea and creatinine levels. High uric acid may be a result of being fed the wrong diet, and the low urea and creatinine levels represents kidney function, which shows lower than normal activity. All this suggests malnutrition. Advice was to feed puppy with quality dog food as growing dog needs plenty to be healthy and strong.

The dog was discharged.

Other than observing cases, I am also involved in some administration work. By picking up phone calls, registering clients and filling in their details into databases.

Today is a very rewarding day. I have learned a lot. In terms of animal handling, the procedures involved while attending to the patient and also on caring about client’s welfare.

Working hours: 10am-6pm